In the manufacture of present-day semiconductor circuits, plasma is typically used directly for treating the conductive layers of the semiconductor circuit. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a charging current 1 generated via the plasma can cause major problems. This charging current 1 is collected directly in printed conductors 2 incorporated in metal layers of the semiconductor circuit and then dissipated via connections 3 to these printed conductors by circuit structures of the semiconductor circuit, while, because of a F-N-tunnel effect, an electrical current 4 forms through the gate oxide in the substrate layer of the semiconductor circuit. If this electrical current 4 through the gate oxide exceeds a certain threshold value, the associated circuit structure (e.g., a transistor) of the semiconductor circuit, and thus the semiconductor circuit itself, is damaged.
Since the printed conductor 2 functions like an antenna, by collecting the charging current 1 generated via the plasma, this effect is also referred to as antenna effect. Measures to protect against this antenna effect are referred to herein as antenna protection. Design rules, which should be adhered to, in order to avoid damage of the semiconductor circuit because of the antenna effect are referred to herein as antenna rules. The antenna rules basically dictate what ratio between an antenna surface area and a gate surface area of a gate of a transistor of the semiconductor circuit should not be exceeded. The antenna surface area comprises the surface area of the printed conductors connected with the corresponding gate.
Due to the increasing miniaturization of the structures of present-day semiconductor circuits and because of the increasingly larger combinational circuits in proportion to the dimensions of these structures, the antenna rules and other design rules are becoming increasingly more restrictive, as a result of which the design of semiconductor circuits or the design freedom in the design of semiconductor circuits is becoming increasingly more restricted.
For these and other reasons, there is a need for the present invention.